Sporty.com will also receive rights to the Premier League’s weekly magazine programming.
Sporty.com, an online sports media and entertainment brand, has acquired digital simulcast rights in Nigeria to the English Premier League, securing a deal to take state-owned commercial broadcasting network NTA’s live feed in a deal brokered by Integral.
Sporty.com will simulcast NTA’s live broadcasts of Premier League matches across the remainder of the 2021-22 season. It will also receive rights to the Premier League’s weekly magazine programming.
Integral said the deal will make Sporty.com “the official simulcast platform for NTA’s broadcast of its sports portfolio”. The NTA does not hold rights to any other major sports properties aside from the Premier League.
Integral holds free-to-air rights in Nigeria to one Premier League match each week in a three-season deal, from 2019-20 to 2021-22. It sublicensed rights to the NTA in Nigeria prior to the 2019-20 season.
Speaking about the deal, Oluchi Enuha, Brand Director at Sporty.com, said: “This is an exciting moment for us as we start streaming the simulcast of NTA’s broadcast of premium content that will include many sports as the English Premier League live matches and weekly shows. We are delighted to connect Nigeria-based football fans with exciting football content they love.”
Alhaji Yakubu Ibn Mohammed, Director-General of the NTA, added:“NTA is pleased to be a part of this innovation secured by Integral, to provide football and sports loving Nigerians with a new platform to watch their favourite sports teams. We look forward to working with Sporty.com to deliver the best quality football content.”
Abimbola Ilo, Managing Director of Integral, stated: “As rights holder of the Premier League free-to-air broadcast in Nigeria, Integral is committed to bringing the Premier League closer to its fans in Nigeria. With this deal, having Sporty.com as the simulcast platform for NTA’s sports content, it is guaranteed to maximize the exposure of exciting football content to passionate Nigerian fans.”
The NTA also acquired sublicensed free-to-air rights to 200 hours of live content from the recent Tokyo 2020 Olympics in another deal with Integral.
